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Battle of Bayou Fourche
|place=Pulaski County, Arkansas |result=Union victory |combatant1= United States |combatant2= Confederate States |commander1=Frederick Steele |commander2=Sterling Price |units1=Army of Arkansas |units2=District of Arkansas |casualties1=72 |casualties2=Unknown }} The Battle of Bayou Fourche, sometimes called the Battle of Little Rock, was a battle in the American Civil War fought on September 10, 1863 east of the town of Little Rock, Arkansas. The battle was the culmination of a campaign launched by Maj. Gen. Fred Steele, on August 1, 1863 to capture Little Rock, Arkansas.United States. War Dept.. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 22, In Two Parts. Part 1, Reports., Book, 1888; digital images, (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth154600/m1/471/?q=Etter : accessed July 26, 2013), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, http://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department, Denton, Texas. The campaign includes engagements at Westport, on 14 August, Harrison's Landing, on 16 August, Brownsville on 25 August, the Reed's Bridge, on 27 August, and Ashely's Mills on 7 September 1863.United States. War Dept. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 22, In Two Parts. Part 1, Reports., Book, 1888; digital images, (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth154600/m1/471/?q=Clarendon : accessed July 17, 2013), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, http://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department, Denton, Texas. After the Union army affected a river crossing east of Little Rock, effectively flanking the Confederate defenses north of the river, the Confederates staged a brief delaying action at Bayou Fourche to allow for evacuation of Little Rock. After the fall of Little Rock, Confederate forces retreated to Arkadelphia and Rockport,United States. War Dept. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 22, In Two Parts. Part 1, Reports., Book, 1888; digital images, (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth154600/m1/471/?q=Clarendon : accessed July 17, 2013), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, http://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department, Denton, Texas. and established a new state capitol at Washington, in Hempstead County, Arkansas."Historic Washington State Park". Arkansas State Parks Guide, 2011. Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. p. 32. Retrieved March 22, 2012. Battle On September 10, 1863, Maj. Gen. Fred Steele, Army of Arkansas commander, sent Brig. Gen. John W. Davidson's cavalry division across the Arkansas River to move on Little Rock, while he took other troops to attack Confederates entrenched on the north side. In his thrust toward Little Rock, Davidson ran into Confederate troops at Bayou Fourche. Aided by Union artillery fire from the north side of the river, Davidson forced them out of their position and sent them fleeing back to Little Rock, which fell to Union troops that evening.National Park Service, American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP), Battle Summary Aftermath Bayou Fourche sealed Little Rock's fate. The fall of Little Rock further helped to contain the Confederate Trans-Mississippi theater, isolating it from the rest of the South. See also *Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War *List of American Civil War battles *Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War Notes References * Report of Colonel John M. Glover, Third Missouri Cavalry. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate armies. Series 1, Volume 22, Page 501 (Part I). United States War Department, 1889, Government Printing Office. See Official Records of the American Civil War. * Sketch of Engagement. Atlas to Accompany the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Plate 25, Map 3. * Civil War Battlefields in the State of Arkansas - Arkansas Post to Devils Backbone * Burford, Timothy Wayne, and Stephanie Gail McBride. The Division: Defending Little Rock, August 25–September 10, 1863. Jacksonville, AR: WireStorm Publishing, 1999. *Christ, Mark K. Civil War Arkansas, 1863: The Battle for a State. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2010. * “Here in the Wilds of Arkansas: Interpreting the 1863 Little Rock Campaign.” MLS thesis, University of Oklahoma, 2000. * “‘The Sting of Being an Exile’: The Little Rock Campaign of 1863. Pulaski County Historical Review 61 (Spring 2013): 34–47. * Huff, Leo E. “The Last Duel in Arkansas: The Marmaduke-Walker Duel.” Arkansas Historical Quarterly 23 (Spring 1964): 36–49. * “The Union Expedition Against Little Rock.” Arkansas Historical Quarterly 22 (Fall 1963): 224–237. Sketch of engagement Category:Conflicts in 1863 Battle of Bayou Forche Category:Advance on Little Rock (American Civil War) Bayou Fourche Category:Battles of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War Battle of Bayou Forche Battle of Bayou Forche Category:Battle of Bayou Fourche